5 Reasons to Turn Down a Job Offer

Turned Down a Good Job

Had been through 3 rounds of interviews with Company A, was perfect for the position, and was the final candidate. Was told I had one more interview which was a "meet and greet" with some Board members, and then they would hand me the offer afterwords. Meet and greet? Try grueling, intense, high pressure grilling. After which, no "hand me" offer. HR rep admitted they lied to me to "set me up" to see how I handled the stressful situation. Got another offer the next day from another company (which I almost blew off because Company A was 'in the bag') and then an offer from the "set up" company. I thought, if they thought it was okay to lie and toy with me as a candidate, how would they treat me as an employee? Turned them down even though the money was somewhat better and am happily at the company that made the 'lower' offer, but treated me fairly.

Peter of NJ @ Oct 30, 2009 11:03:12 AM

grass not greener on other side.

leaving one job to go to another .

i took this job because it paid a little bit more than my last one. a little bit closer to home .my last job been there a long time happy there .i wish i didn,t leave there . it,s not worth a little bit more $$$.my new job is very anal about mistake .one mess up you are crucified.makes things most difficult and miserable, very few people there speak english.no predjudice in me.. so sometimes a little bit more chump change $$ is not worth it at all.

bottom line don,t leave job if you are somewhat happy there.go extra mile it,s worth it.

paul of MA @ Oct 30, 2009 10:48:35 AM

Beware of 'full commission' sales jobs

I've mostly worked as a Sales Engineer in the information technology industry in B2B sales roles, with good base salaries and benefits throughout a 28-year career. In today's job environment, it is distressing to see how many sales jobs are now full commission only, even though the position requires all new business development and considerable outlay of your own money for expenses. Many of the full commission sales jobs have been developed to use new sales employees for lead development only, requiring recruits to submit a database of family, friends and former coworkers during unpaid training. You'll be hard sold on the potential earnings of the job, only to find out that no one has ever come close to the earnings managers and recruiters describe during the interview process. Avoid these scams at all costs!

Leigh of GA @ Oct 27, 2009 13:11:12 PM

When rejecting an offer helps you

If you're fully tuned in to all the details of the offer and about the company and your would-be boss, sometimes rejecting a job offer can help you decide what you really want in a job, a workplace, and management, if you weren't all that sure before about what you wanted. The experience can help you either make small adjustments to your job search strategy or nudge you in a different direction altogether.

Rick of MA @ Oct 26, 2009 15:17:28 PM

Don't Jump too quick

This is a really good article of points. Very true. I was "laid off" from a job I hated and almost took another miserable job , just to pay the bills. Luckily something better fell in my lap before I started the new miserable job. I found out a week later the ill feels I had about the job were true!

As for the lower pay, I took a lower paying job, but I don't regret it nor will I leave in a year for better pay. I am happy to have a good, stable job, in a good environment, and willing to adjust my budget to be happy.

Mary of FL @ Oct 26, 2009 14:37:11 PM

unempoyed

You must have never been unemployed and off benefits. You are living in the cozy world of the employed. I am betting 95% of the unemployed would take these kinds of jobs. Putting up with an "aggressive" culture is a small price to pay to feed your family.

John B of FL @ Oct 26, 2009 13:52:53 PM

I turned down a job

I was so relieved to turn down a job opening for the reasons you listed. The manager seemed very rigid and when I asked him to describe his management style in the interview, he couldn't really. When I asked him to describe the culture all he said was that his employees worked really hard and didn't come in late to work. Maybe it wouldn't be a bad job for someone else but too me, it just seemed awful. I realized after the interview that I wouldn't be able to stay there even a year if I took the job. A job that kind of sucked out my soul had ended in a layoff in August and I knew I wasn't ready to do that again. Good advice.

A loyal reader of IL @ Oct 26, 2009 13:12:48 PM

Exactly!

This article was great, especially #3 - I left the "perfect" job because my boss was unorganized & a terrible manager. I now have an almost-perfect job, and the fact that my boss is a pleasure to work with and an excellent manager makes everything that much better.

LK of NJ @ Oct 26, 2009 12:55:10 PM